The Radio Demon had been correct in his estimate of time. The pair walked for roughly an hour before coming within sight of the hotel. He had also used small teleports whenever he reached busier sections of the densely populated city. Aleu realized that the demon carrying her did not want other demons to see or sense her presence. She wondered if he was being overprotective or if she was in great peril existing where she didn't belong. However, his teleporting was kept to a minimum, as he discovered that it took a toll on her body. A single teleport going no more than a block would set her skin sizzling and smoking as if on fire and jostled the broken, fractured bones within her thin frame. Longer distances caused small fluctuations in her ability to see and hear her surroundings while her skin would actually start to hurt and turn red. After one longer teleport, Alastor was forced to put her down and briefly remove thicker clothing items like her jacket and shoes as her skin revolted, growing a deep shade of red as if the child had a massive sunburn covering her entire body. The sensations, luckily, only lasted a minute to five minutes depending on the distance jumped.
Alastor's smile grew as the pair finally laid eyes on the towering hotel, "Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel, little dear!"
Aleu opened her brown eyes, as she had started drifting asleep in response to his nonstop humming, and looked forward. The hotel rested on a slight incline. It seemed to be a jumble of parts and pieces with a roughly straight design in the center. She could make out a blimp attached to one side and a tower with antennas on another. Towards the bottom were structures resembling a ship and a carousel. A large eye stared forward from its position at the top, as if guarding the building from any attack or intruder. As Alastor stepped past the fence gate and onto the property, a sign on the tower lit up to say, "on air". A sign stating "vacancy" flickered and buzzed above the hotel entrance. Alastor released a staticky chuckle as his shadow left his side and dashed for the hotel steps.
The little girl whispered, "Does anyone else stay here?"
Red eyes glanced down to her as her current guardian replied, "Indeed. We have a few guests at the moment seeking redemption. One is a tall, lanky fellow by the name of Angel Dust. Don't let his off-putting, sexual advances intimidate you, as he is quite caring deep down. The other guest is a serpentine fellow by the name of Sir Pentious and his egg minions. Again, quite friendly the lot of them. Beyond them, the hotel is staffed by my good friends, Husker and Nifty." His smile grew soft as he continued, "The only other inhabitants are my wife, Charlie, and her wife, Vaggie."
Aleu looked up at him and murmured, "How did you three end up together?"
Alastor held up his right hand and used his fingers to help emphasize his point, "Charlie is bisexual while Vaggie is lesbian, and I am asexual. We all became friends over time after Charlie took me on as a business partner. After Charlie's father was attacked, other denizens of Hell were worried about the future and demanded that Charlie be in a relationship that could produce an heir, which is not possible between her and Vaggie. So, I agreed to marry her as a means of staving off those vultures. It also meant that she and Vaggie could continue their relationship without any impedance. Vaggie and I remain good friends, now tied together by a mutual love and respect for our significant other."
The hotel doors flew open at that moment. Alastor's shadow raced back towards them with two women on its heels. Aleu noted how Alastor smile wider and knew these women had to be Charlie and Vaggie. One was slightly shorter than the other with grayish skin. A large pink bow was in her long, pale silver hair. She was dressed in a hotel staff outfit of red and black. Only one eye could be seen while the other eye, her left eye, had a large X over it. The other woman moved with power and authority while maintaining a happy air compared to her stoic and tense companion. Her light blond hair beautifully matched her white skin. Large, bright eyes were surrounded with eyeliner and adjacent to two red spots on her cheeks. She was dressed in a red and black suit that matched with the hotel staff theme.
As the pair approached, the blond-haired lady spoke up, "Alastor! Thank goodness you are here safely. I was beginning to worry." Her bright eyes landed on the child, who had shrunk closer to the male demon in search of reassurance, "Is this Aleu?"
The Radio Demon tilted his head forward, "This is indeed little Aleu, my dear Charlie." He looked down at her. His right hand indicated to the blond-haired woman, "Little dear, this is Charlotte Magne, princess of Hell and my wife. She is also the owner of the hotel." His right hand then turned slightly to indicate the other woman, "This here is Vagatha, or Vaggie for short."
"Oi! We can't stand out here in the open like this. We need to get her inside," Vaggie snapped before stepping around Alastor.
The tall demon chuckled as Vaggie began pushing him towards the hotel doors at a greater speed than he had been originally walking. Charlie easily kept pace on Alastor's right. Aleu sensed that Charlie was trying to remain in her line of sight. It helped to keep her calm as she knew where everyone was at all times. Bright eyes looked over to her. Catching Aleu's gaze, Charlie gave a large, warm smile that was very different from Alastor's ever-constant grin. The male demon had a dark air while his smile always seemed to be daring someone to try and cross him. This lady had power and authority, but her nature was much kinder, full of light and hope. Aleu felt herself drawn to it. The stoic nature that Vaggie had covered her protective nature, though Aleu could still sense it flowing from the silver-haired woman.
Her head tilted slightly, causing Alastor's left hand to pull closer to her face and Charlie's eyes to dart to her. The three were very different from each other yet seemed to mix perfectly. They all acted on the same goal, as seen by their reactions to her movements. Aleu blinked slowly as she pondered Alastor's words to her. They were all of different sexual orientation and very different personalities. Yet they had been around each other long enough to not only respect their differences but to allow love and friendship to flourish. It seemed so alien to the young girl. Even in the little town, marriage was rarely a happy affair – filled with spats and arguing and even coming to blows. Differences were something to point out and mock. If one was too different, such as herself, it meant they were ostracized from society. As a spike of pain came from her wounded ribs, Aleu knew that being ostracized led to abandonment and harm.
The hotel doors opened with a creak as Alastor's shadow pushed them inward. The hotel lobby was well-cleaned with a check-in desk and a bar to one side, a fireplace, and multiple cushioned seating arrangements. Just like with the outside world, many eyes adorned the walls, furniture, and decorations. Aleu wondered why these eyes were there in the first place. Stairs led to the higher floors where guests probably stayed. Vaggie dashed past into the interior of the hotel. Charlie took the lead as she and Alastor followed the dwindling figure. After passing a few doors, they came across a long hallway that span the length of the hotel. Signs indicated a dining area and ballrooms were hidden by some of the doors seen. Charlie made a left turn and approached a large stain-glass window. Alastor followed then stepped through the door she held open, being careful not to jostle Aleu's fragile body.
"Holy sh*t! You all weren't kidding!" a shocked, high-pitched male voice spoke up.
Aleu's head snapped in the voice's direction. A very tall, pink and white figure approached with a blanket. His right eye was white with a black pupil while the left eye was black with a red pupil. Three dots, looking like tiny eyes, lined underneath each of his eyes. His fur was patterned beautifully with stripes and a heart-shape on the chest fluff. His tall frame was very thin and lanky. Aleu quickly spotted a second set of arms. With a whimper, she pulled closer to Alastor. So, this tall figure had to be Angel Dust, the spider demon.
A calming hand tightened on her left shoulder, "Calm yourself, Angel. She is easily frightened and in no condition to attempt flight." One eyebrow then rose upward, "Did you think this was a matter we would joke about?"
"I guess I had hoped it was a trick," Angel replied in a soft tone. His two-colored eyes looked down at her. He gave a gentle, sharp-toothed smile before performing a small bow at the waist. He spoke calmly and quietly, "My apologies for startling you, young miss. My name is Angel Dust, but you can call me Angel. Will you allow me to give you this blanket?"
Aleu studied him for a moment before replying with a whimper, "Sure…Angel."
Calmly the tall spider approached the pair. His four arms easily moved with Alastor as the pair removed her dirtied jacket then wrapped the blanket around her. Angel's eyes narrowed as he noted the many wounds marring her skin and under her torn clothing. Charlie had stepped past and adjusted some pillows. Two two-person couches had been pushed together while facing each other. It formed a circular gap wrapped in a barrier. Many blankets had been spread over the cushions to form a makeshift mattress. The pillows had now been strategically placed over the area. Alastor gingerly leaned down. Charlie and Angel leaned in and helped him lay her down on the blankets, putting broken bones carefully on or against the pillows. In all, the set-up allowed Aleu to relax with her wounded body expertly supported and warmed.
The door to the room opened, revealing babble of several rapidly-speaking voices overlapping each other. Aleu's brown eyes spotted Vaggie approaching with a tray of food. Surrounding her were many egg-shaped demons, each one carrying something different. One placed an end table above her head, allowing another to put down a bowl while a third placed a glass. Two more stacked on top of each other, allowing them to pour water into the bowl. Another pair stacked on top of each other poured ice and water into the glass while yet another handed a stack of smaller towels to Charlie.
One egg demon peeked over the armrests near her feet and muttered to another, "Poor little thing. Whatcha think they are going to do?"
"We're going to patch her up, you blithering mindless dolts," a sharp male voice snapped. Aleu's eyes widened as a snake slithered into her view towards her feet. His scales were brown on the back and yellow on the front with a completely brown face. His "hair" was formed from his body's hood, allowing him to resemble a cobra. His pinkish-red eyes narrowed as he towered over the egg demons and hissed, "Now be quiet. She needs to eat something before we start messing with her injuries. I've assigned you all to help young Nifty bring in supplies and prepare a proper room for our guest. Now get!"
His two fangs came out as he snapped the last words and pointed towards the door. Immediately, the gaggle of egg demons headed out with a chorus of "Yes, boss!" before shutting the door behind them. It was then Aleu realized that someone else had also entered the room. This demon was shaped like a cat with black fur, white face, and red wings. The wings were patterned as if they were gaming cards. Aleu believed the adults called the game poker. This demon was talking quietly to Alastor, using his long claws like fingers as he obviously listed something off to the Radio Demon. Her groggy mind pieced together that the snake demon was Sir Pentious while this cat-like demon had to be Alastor's friend Husker. Yellow eyes soon spotted her curious gaze.
"Greetings, young Aleu," he said, tipping the small hat he wore between his ears. A thin tail moved in long, sweeping arcs, "It's a good thing Alastor found you when he did. Not all demons in this wretched place are people you can trust. But enough of that. My name is Husker. Is there anything you would like to drink besides water. I'm sure I have lemonade and juice in a back fridge."
Her mind immediately jumped to the idea of orange juice. It was a nice, soothing drink that she loved back when her uncle and aunt pretended to care for her. Quickly Aleu snapped herself out of that fantasy. She shook her head at the cat demon. Someone such as her didn't deserve to have anything special, especially if it meant that Husker had to go out of his way to find it.
"Come now, what do you want? Ole Husky-kins isn't going to bite," Angel said, leaning over the back of the couch on her left.
With a staticky chuckle, Alastor spoke up, "If he did bite, why we'd have to bite him back!" He started laughing at his own humor.
Charlie leaned over with a damp cloth and started cleaning Aleu's cheeks and arms. She smiled warmly, "If you want something, just tell us. No one here is going to hurt you for asking."
Aleu blinked slowly as she pondered their words. She then turned to Husker and spoke softly, "Do you have orange juice?"
"I believe we do. I'll go and look," Husker replied with a gentle smile.
With that, the cat demon disappeared from her sight. The door closing indicated that he had truly left. As Charlie continued cleaning her exposed skin, Sir Pentious leaned over and gave Aleu some medicine and her glass of ice water. Slipping away, he made room for Vaggie to come in with some neatly cut slices of apple and a cluster of grapes. All the while, Alastor leaned against the couch backing on her right. His red eyes studied the room around him with a cold, dark look. His smile had thinned, giving him a more murderous and darker look than before. However, catching her gaze once, he leaned over and gingerly ran the back of his fingers on her right cheek. The action had told Alina that Alastor was keeping watch, ready to defend her at a moment's notice. A half hour later, Husker returned with a large glass of orange juice wrapped in a damp cloth to help keep it cool. With him came a small, one-eyed demon with red hair and a large, friendly smile. She was introduced as Nifty. The small demon was quick to start cleaning the room and any dirtied supplies while complaining about Aleu's damaged and dirty clothing.
She waved her hand to Aleu as she spoke cheerily, "I'm going to find you some new clothes! Be back in a bit!"
Aleu whimpered softly as the small demon dashed off. She muttered something soft to herself, hoping that no one heard her.
Alastor, however, caught her muttering. "What is on that little mind of yours, darling?"
With all eyes on her, Aleu forced herself to ask the question tugging at her heart, "Why? Why are taking care of me?"